TUSCALOOSA, Alabama -- When Jeoffrey Pagan first laid eyes on A'Shawn Robinson, he didn't see a new teammate.

"I thought," Pagan said, "we had a new coach."

He wasn't alone.

"I wondered where his whistle was because he looks like a coach," Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart said. "He's about a 28‑looking‑year‑old dude."

With a chin-strap beard and built with a ready-to-play 320 pounds, Robinson looked the part immediately upon his arrival at Alabama. He played like it, too.

Robinson's repetitions increased with each game throughout his freshman season. He picked up sacks in back-to-back games in September and added two tackles for loss against Kentucky midway through October.

"He's a very intelligent young man. He took pride in knowing his assignments," Smart said. "I can remember during the Texas A&M game there was frustration during the week of practice that 'I don't know this call, that call.' When he gets in the game, he plays fast and plays very athletic."

Picking up most of his snaps at defensive end, Robinson was also used some at nose guard. Versatility was nothing new for a player some recruiting websites projected as a possible option along the offensive line.

Robinson finished with eight tackles for loss and 38 overall. He took home SEC All-Freshman honors and earned the right to enter 2014 as a projected starter at one of the open defensive end spots.

"I didn't really expect it but that was my goal to try and play as much as I possibly could and try to help the team win," Robinson said in January after the Sugar Bowl. "So far, I helped along the way. Could have done a lot better but I've got to keep working and looking forward to the next season."

A better Robinson is one of the major reasons why Alabama shouldn't blink as it looks to replace two starters for a second consecutive year.

Pagan and Ed Stinson were rocks for Alabama in 2013, but neither generated quite the pass rush that Robinson provided on a consistent basis. It was apparent from Day 1, Pagan said.

"I've seen A'Shawn just completely destroy our starting offensive line with no moves or pass rush. Just straight bull rush," Pagan said. "I've seen him walk starters back to the quarterback."

After Pagan figured out Robinson wasn't a coach, he struck up numerous conversations with a player he also describes as "funny" and full of jokes. He was his protege, after all.

It took Pagan a second to figure out Robinson was serious when he made one such proclamation.

"He came in and one of the first things he told me was, I'm going to win the Heisman," Pagan said. "I laughed and a bunch of other guys laughed. We just pretty much told him how hard it would be to win the Heisman. To this day, he still tells me I'm going to win the Heisman.

"I tell him, you know what, if that's what you want to do, do it. If you think that's what you can do, do it. I'm behind him 100 percent."

In the days leading up to the Sugar Bowl, Smart said Alabama's defensive line depth wasn't what it had been in years' past. At this point of the spring, it appears that issue has been resolved, as Robinson and sophomore Jonathan Allen have been seen with the first-team defensive line at end and senior Brandon Ivory has been back at nose guard.

Waiting in the wings are junior-college transfers Jarran Reed and D.J. Pettway, both of whom are anticipated to make an immediate impact. Junior nose guard Darren Lake has earned valuable experience over the past two seasons and sophomores Dalvin Tomlinson and Dee Liner were highly coveted out of high school.

Da'Shawn Hand, the nation's No. 1 defensive end according to Rivals.com, joins the fray in May.

"It can be very promising next year," Robinson said. "It's going to be pretty tough out there but me and the other freshman Jonathan Allen had a pretty good season and there are other freshmen coming in, the JUCO guys, we're going to be a force to reckon with next year, I feel."